Lewiston: Richardson opening Fourth and Center streets anchor

The largest building on the corner of North Fourth and Center streets in Lewiston is ready to open to the public.

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Richardson
building 'incubator' for future small businesses

Article
and photos by Joshua Maloni

Professor Herbert Richardson's vision for his
property on North Fourth and Center streets is finally coming to
fruition. The entrepreneur and Edwin Mellen Press author is about to
open his two-story corner building, which he is calling "Lewiston
Small Shops."

"What I'm really interested in doing - I'm
interested in developing - in the village, (are) retail shops. In
particular, retail shops that are consistent, within a sense, with
the character of the village," Richardson said.

Lewiston Small Shops will serve as an "incubator,"
Richardson said, for potential business owners. He will offer between
17 and 20 units (table-size and cubicles), where budding retailers
can display their high-quality arts and crafts or services such as
photography.

Richardson likened the idea to Buffalo's
Allentown.

"It seems to me that that is something that
almost has to be developed here," he said, because Lewiston is home
to Artpark, a world-renowned art and performing arts center.

"It's crazy ... not to have something down
here on Center Street that complements that," Richardson said. "My
own sense is this is madness. You bring 20,000 people into the
village for music and artistic events, and you've got nothing in
the village that will capture this interest for, can I say, 200. ...
I think that there is a problem there.

"I
think that one of my goals is - has always been - to have
something in the village that would complement Artpark and that would
give people coming to Artpark a reason to come here either before the
performance or after the performance on another day. ... My own view
is that there is really room to develop art- and craft-type small
retail units here."

Richardson
estimated the cost to start a new business in Lewiston is $30,000
($12,000 for rent and utilities, and $18,000 for payroll). Lewiston
Small Shops will lease table-size units for $75 per month ($900 per
year) and cubicles from $180 per month. All leases are on a full-year
basis and require prepayment. Closet space also is available for $125
per month.

While
tenants will display their goods inside the building, they don't
actually have to be on hand to sell them. Marguerite Rupnow, one of
Richardson's employees, will manage the store and cash out each
customer.

"We
want upscale merchandise," she said.

Lewiston
Small Shops will offer credit card services and cover the cost of
utilities. For each cash sale credited to a vendor, the manager will
charge 20 percent for processing (25 percent for credit card
purchases).

Once
tenants fall into place, Lewiston Small Shops will officially open.
Hours of operation will be 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through
Saturday.

"I'm
interested in helping some people start some businesses,"
Richardson said. "It's a $25,000 to $30,000 investment to do a
small retail business. That's a massive amount of money for people
to pay out when they're not even sure that it will work."

"Part
of the problem in retail is you don't know until you try it.
There's no way you can predict," he said. "My theory is. ...
Are there some people out there that would like to try to rent a
small space?"

Richardson
seemed to think there are such people. Moreover, he estimated one new
business could start each year as a result of his testing grounds.

Over
10 years, "That would double or triple what we have here now," he
said.

The
river side of Richardson's 8,500-square-foot complex opened in
2008. The mall boasts large, white pillars and a spacious concrete
patio. Linda Hankin operates an ice cream stand and arts-based retail
shop.

But
up until now, the centerpiece of the property, the two-story
building, has sat empty.

Richardson's
goal from the beginning was to do what he is doing now: offer space
to artists and creative types. When asked why it's taken four years
to open the building, he said, "It's a gigantic expense, both in
terms of staff and funding. This is funded out of the cash flow of
the Edwin Mellen Press, which is a scholarly publisher."

He
said the cost in getting to this point, where the building can open
to the public, has been about $700,000.

"The
goal has been to do a little bit every year," he said. "We've
gradually gotten to this point."

Richardson
noted the corner of Fourth and Center was once a gas station, and "No
bank will loan any money against any property that is located on a
former gas station, because they're afraid they'll get liability
for any environmental things."

Some
Lewiston business owners have expressed their concern about the black
fence that surrounds Richardson's units. Coupled with the pillars
and the buildings' setbacks, which are further away from Center
Street than neighboring stores, passersby can miss what's inside
Fourth and Center.

"It
looks too forbidding," Richardson said.

He
initially saw this unique configuration as a positive, but, "Now I
see it as a negative," he said.

"I
really have come to see that people want to be up there (on Center
Street)," Richardson said. "One of the things I would like to do.
... I think we need to get more activities out on the sidewalk."

"Our
failure to have something out on the sidewalk makes this look like a
prison," he said. "It's (a) terrible problem."

To
remedy this, Richardson said he'd like to have more displays in his
courtyard, as well as books and clothes for sale; people eating and
drinking; and maybe even something like a farmers market.

"We're
moving in that direction," he said.

Village
of Lewiston Mayor Terry Collesano said residents would be "enthused"
to see more activity at Fourth and Center.

"I'm
elated that finally something is happening on that corner," he
said, noting he daily receives questions about the property. "Any
kind of activity - that is great. That is probably one of the best
corners for (potential) business."

In
addition to Lewiston Small Shops, Richardson plans to open a small,
25-seat theater (in between his two buildings), which would screen
independent and documentary films, and serve as presentation space
for tenants.

The
top floor of Lewiston Small Shops will remain closed until extra
space is needed.

Those
interested in renting a space at Lewiston Small Shops can contact
Rupnow at 716-754-2420 or visit her at 402 Center St.